Is watching too many TV soap operas harmful to your mind?

Alvin Yuen, 19, Hong Kong University of Science and Technology

The soap operas on television might seem like fun, guilty pleasure, but they could be detrimental to your mental health. These days, most TV producers target their shows at the younger generation. So you have to be careful about the TV programmes you watch.

Soaps try to entertain you and keep you hooked. Scriptwriters will use anything to entice viewers into watching their shows.

Often, these shows portray a sense of distorted reality. Things that happen in TV soaps rarely occur in everyday life, and this gives youngsters a wrong picture of the outside world. Although we understand that these dramas aren't real, they leave a negative impression on the viewers, especially teenagers.

Watching soaps is also very time-consuming. Die-hard fans won't be able to do anything else after sitting through, for example, three, hour-long TV soaps daily. This will be especially hard on students who have a heavy workload.

The media should promote responsible behaviour among the younger audience. But TV soaps take youngsters to a fantasy world, making it hard for them to connect with real-life situations.